All products featured on Ethos have been independently selected by our editorial team.
When you buy something through our links, Ethos may earn an affiliate commission.
With clean ingredient moisturizers, nourish your delicate skin without compromising your ethics.
Our skin never seems to get a break. Summer sees our skin at its sweatiest, with SPF leaving it greasy and irritated. Going from 100 percent humidity and heat to air conditioning doesn’t do it any favors, either. And while the cooler months of the year do have some positives (holidays, cozy knitwear, etc.), dry skin is not one of them. Lower humidity levels, wind exposure, and indoor heating can sap our skin’s natural moisture, leaving it feeling tight, dull, rough, and even uncomfortably itchy.
So how do we find balance? Turning to creams can help to restore that all-important moisture barrier, seal in hydration, and reduce any painful cracking or chapping.
Skin moisturizers often comprise a blend of ingredients, each designed to address different aspects of skin health. These components work in tandem to ensure the skin is well-hydrated, nourished, and protected from external aggressors.
Humectants are a pivotal component in many moisturizers. These substances, such as glycerin and hyaluronic acid, are adept at attracting moisture from the atmosphere and drawing it into the skin. This helps to increase the water content of the skin’s outer layer, promoting a plump and hydrated appearance.
Emollients, which include oils and lipids like jojoba oil and shea butter, are another crucial ingredient. They function by filling the spaces between skin cells, effectively smoothing and softening the skin’s surface. By doing so, they create a smoother texture and assist in restoring the skin’s natural lipid barrier.
In addition to these, occlusives, such as petroleum jelly, are used to form a protective barrier on the skin’s surface. This layer helps to seal in moisture and prevents it from evaporating, ensuring the skin remains hydrated for longer periods. But petroleum is a byproduct of gasoline (it’s made of petroleum, after all!), and not ideal if you’re looking for natural skincare. Fortunately, there are a number of alternatives to harsh chemical ingredients, including alternatives to petroleum jelly.
Clean ingredient skin moisturizers
Keep your skin hydrated and feeling fresh with vegan moisturizers free from common animal ingredients such as lanolin and beeswax. These may have moisturizing properties, but they’re exploitative and linked to the climate crisis. Plus, plant-based ingredients work as well (or better) than animal ingredients, too, as these products prove.
Rhode Barrier Butter
Hailey Bieber’s Rhode Barrier Butter is a dense, restorative balm-to-cream designed to comfort stressed and depleted skin. Powered by Amazonian murumuru butter, ceramide NP, peptides, and a hyaluronic acid complex, it locks in hydration while reinforcing the skin barrier. Antioxidants like vitamin E, calming panthenol, and soothing ginger root extract further protect against dryness and irritation. Hailey calls it her “desert island” pick, and fans love how it melts into a dewy, cushioned finish. It’s the kind of product that feels both clinical and indulgent, making barrier care a true ritual.
Beau Domaine Fluid Cream
The Beau Domaine Fluid Cream is a lightweight anti-aging moisturizer designed to deliver long-lasting hydration and visible results. Its light texture melts effortlessly into the skin, leaving it intensely moisturized, smoothed, and energized for a radiant, even complexion. Just two drops are all you need for daily use.
Backed by science, the formula boasts a 115 percent hydration boost after two hours, a 10 percent reduction in fatigue signs, and a 23 percent decrease in eye bags. With 96 percent natural origin ingredients, the cream includes powerful botanicals like Syrah, Mourvèdre, and Grenache seed extracts, resveratrol from grapevine branches, apigenin from chamomile, and catechin from green tea. Made in France, this vegan, non-gendered product excludes harmful ingredients, earning a perfect 100/100 rating on Yuka for its clean formulation.
Biossance Squalane + Probiotic Gel Moisturizer
Biossance tops most “best beauty product” lists for a reason. The brand prioritizes both high-performance ingredients and sustainability to produce formulas that will leave your skin feeling nourished, without compromising the earth’s natural resources.
This clarifying moisturizer, for example, contains ultra-hydrating plant-derived squalane (an ingredient that can sometimes be sourced from sharks), as well as potent encapsulated probiotics. The result is a “featherweight moisturizer” that will soothe redness, minimize pores, and calm irritation.
Pai Love and Haight
Pai describes this hydrating moisturizer as “an infinity pool for parched skin,” and it’s a pretty accurate comparison. This is largely down to the brand’s choice of ingredients. The product combines avocado, which has an anti-inflammatory, hydrating effect, with jojoba oil, which can help to repair damaged skin. The result is a light, buttery, nourishing, and softening cream, which is ideal for dry and eczema-prone skin.
Youth to the People Adaptogen Deep Moisture Cream
Adaptogens are natural ingredients that help the body adapt to stress—in this case, skin stress. Ingredients like plant squalane, jojoba, and shea butter work alongside a pro-grade peptide complex to calm, hydrate, and soothe your skin when it’s looking, and feeling, aggravated (which, let’s be honest, is a common occurrence in the harsh winter months).
Tata Harper Superkind Fortifying Moisturizer
When it comes to ingredients, Tata Harper is all about more is more. The luxury brand packs its formulas with the most effective, potent natural ingredients, like shea butter, safflower seed oil, mulberry seed oil, apple seed oil, and calendula extract, all of which will immediately get to work on healing and calming your dry, damaged skin, so that you can reap the rewards in no time.
Versed Skin Soak
Versed’s Skin Soak does exactly what the name implies: soaks your skin with restorative, nourishing ingredients, like vitamin E, squalane, and antioxidant-rich algae extract, in order to soften, smooth, and hydrate. At less than $18, this rich, lightweight formula is also a bargain find.
Related on Ethos:
